From college football player to master developer, mentor, family man and much more, James Cassan experienced a great life that was filled with wonderful accomplishments, said his wife, Doris.
James put his nose to the grindstone in the engineering realm on Boeing’s SST passenger planes in the 1960s, later launched a Dollar Rent A Car franchise with Doris and etched his stamp on Mercer Island’s Town Center by developing The Mercer, a pair of towering retail and residential structures.
“We were a good team together,” said Doris, adding that they taught Sunday School together and volunteered with Operation Nightwatch to help tackle poverty and homelessness.
James passed away at the age of 83 on Dec. 13 in his Mercer Island home due to complications from Parkinson’s disease.
A celebration of his life will take place at 2 p.m. on Feb 24 at the former Mercer Island Covenant Church, now named Encounter Church, at 3200 78th Ave. SE. James is survived by Doris, his wife of 62 years, along with his children Todd, Curt and Traci and six grandchildren.
“If there is one word I would use to describe my friend James it would be generosity. He believed in investing big time in people he cared about,” said Greg Asimakoupoulos, the former lead pastor at Mercer Island Covenant Church. “As owners of Dollar Rent A Car in the Seattle area, James and Doris were generous to the church. They provided vehicles for the pastoral staff use and 15 passenger vans for the youth ministry. Their hearts beat loudly for our church’s ministry to international students.”
James was raised in Portales, New Mexico, and received his bachelor’s and master’s of science degrees in civil engineering at New Mexico State University. A pair of his subsequent jobs in the educational field were as an instructor at Michigan Technologial University and Lehigh University.
The couple journeyed to Seattle in the summer of 1967 when Boeing came calling and spent their first night in the area at the old Mercer Island Travel Lodge. They never left the Island and soon bought a home on the inviting terrain where they embraced the safe environment and approved of the solid schools.
They opened the first Dollar Rent A Car in Seattle in 1968 and the franchise is still rolling today with an office on Mercer Island. Property development was next on James’ agenda during the following decade and that led to the formation of Dollar Development, which sturdily held the reins in bringing The Mercer East and West apartments to the Island in 2007 and 2014, respectively.
While The Mercer was being erected, Doris said that James met with the building contractors, construction workers and architects on a daily basis.
“He loved that part of the business. He loved the development. He loved being part of a building company. It was in his blood,” said Doris, adding that James possessed a sense of humor to accompany his loving nature.
Doris believed that God was opening and closing doors for them along their path across the United States to landing in Seattle and reaping further success.
James made an impact on the people he worked and interacted with, said Doris, adding that they’ve treated their employees right over the years.
“I think his biggest achievement was that he mentored so many young people on Mercer Island,” said Doris, adding that some of their rental car employees have worked with them for 40-plus years. “(His mentoring) helped them grow along with their profession and their skills.”
